


Upgrade

by Feena_c



Series: Detroit: Expanded [5]
Category: Detroit: Become Human (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, alternate devaint point, protective dad Hank
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-22
Updated: 2018-07-22
Packaged: 2019-06-14 07:28:27
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,745
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15383709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Feena_c/pseuds/Feena_c
Summary: Based on this post: https://subject-a7-the-leader.tumblr.com/post/176079729426/ok-but-imagine-if-the-rk900-model-came-out-before#notes by subject-a7-the-leader on tumblr. I thought it was such a great idea!  There's a lot you could do with this so I hope others will be inspired to write on this too.  Here's what happened when I took it on.(posted with permission)





	Upgrade

_     “If you don’t make progress soon, Connor, I may have to replace you.”  _ __

__ _ “I understand, Amanda.” _

Connor opened his eyes.  He hadn’t actually just been giving a report to Cyberlife.  Amanda had said those words days ago, sitting in her boat and glaring at him as she always seemed to lately.  The words lingered in spite of the time passed. No matter how much Connor tried to focus on his mission, on doing what she wanted, he couldn’t get the threat out of his mind.  It was a threat. Aimed at him specifically. He frowned, hands still over the keyboard at his temporary desk. He shouldn’t feel threatened… but he did. And that was part of why Amanda was talking about replacing him, he was sure.  If he could just… stop  _ feeling _ things everything would be fine.  But he couldn’t. He was trying, but he couldn’t.  

“Don’t work too hard there, Connor.”  

Connor glanced up.  Hank had walked behind him, sipping a coffee.  The words weren’t harsh, they were teasing. Connor had left a tab on tropical fish open on his desktop.  Why had he even opened it in the first place? It relaxed him. He shouldn’t need to relax. 

Hank’s light expression turned serious when Connor just stared at him.  “You okay, kid?” 

Connor seemed to collect himself.  “I’m fine, Lieutenant. Apologies, I was… processing data.” 

Hank walked around to his desk and plopped down, scooting his chair so he was facing Connor.  “Yea? Come up with any leads?” 

Connor frowned minimally.  “No, I was… “ he lied to Amanda enough lately, covering for his… failures.  He didn’t want to lie to Hank. “I wasn’t thinking about the case.” 

Hank raised an eyebrow.  “Oh? The fish?” 

“No, not them, either.” 

“What then?”  Hank sipped his coffee again. 

Connor hesitated, opened his mouth, then closed it again.  Something in him refused to speak of this, to admit he was having… a malfunction.  Obviously that’s what it was. He should run diagnostics. “Nothing. I should… report to Cyberlife.”  A lie. He was lying to Hank now, too. He wasn’t going to report to Cyberlife, not yet. He wanted an excuse to sit quietly and run his diagnostics.  

Hank still looked curious, but nodded.  “Okay. Do your thing.” 

“Anderson!”  Hank looked over as Gavin yelled at him.  Connor looked too, postponing his diagnostics. 

“What’d’ya want, Reed?”  Hank asked gruffly, sipping his coffee louder. 

“Nothin’.  I’m just talkin’ to you cause Fowler told me to call you into his office.”  Gavin had just come from there. 

Hank made an irritated sound. 

“Is something wrong?”  Connor asked. He knew Hank and Fowler butted heads at times.  Gavin answered before Hank. 

“For once, Hank’s not in the shit.  Nah, word from Cyberlife is there’s a new, improved plastic boot licker available.  Guess you’re gonna be gettin’ scrapped. Or do they recycle you assholes? Is Cyberlife into being green?”  Gavin smirked. 

Connor just stared, apparently unaffected, although nothing could be further from the truth.  

“What?  What’re you talkin’ about, Reed?”  Hank scowled at the man, glancing at Connor. 

“Hey I’m not a news boy. Go talk to Fowler.  Dip shit,” Gavin smacked Connor’s head as he walked off.  

“Hey!”  Hank called after him, but Gavin was already yelling at someone else, and just threw the bird at Hank over his shoulder. 

Hank looked at Connor again, who was looking impassively at the desk.  Hank said something under his breath and stocked off towards the Captain’s office.  

Connor looked up after a moment.  He could see Hank and Fowler through the glass.  Hank was gesturing vigorously. Maybe he was objecting to his continued assignment with an android.  Connor frowned involuntarily, then corrected his features to be neutral again. No, it wasn’t working.  He glanced down, realizing his fists were clenched. Something was wrong. With him. He felt wrong. He was… upset, pissed off even and… scared.  He was scared. He didn’t want to be replaced. To return to Cyberlife and be decommissioned… he didn’t want to die. He  _ sensed _ his LED go red as his emotions flared up, unable to calm them.  Not good. What should he do? He didn’t know what to do. There were people all around, he couldn’t do anything here.  He couldn’t think here. He stood up abruptly. If anyone had been watching they’d have wondered at his action as his chair slid back and smacked into the divider behind him.  Without any real plan Connor started walking. 

 

\----

 

Hank stomped out of Fowler’s office.  He was tired of this fuckin’ job, the whole thing, tired of dealing with Fowler all the time.  It hadn’t always been like this between them but… Hank stopped beside his desk, realizing Connor wasn’t in sight.  He’d been about to open his mouth to bitch about Fowler being willing to just replace Connor in the middle of their assignment, about Cyberlife thinking it was fine to just sub in a new model, but Connor wasn’t there to talk to.  Hank looked around. It was unusual for Connor to be far away from him while they were at the precinct. 

“Hey Chris, where’d Connor go?”  Hank yelled at the man across the aisle.  Chris glanced up. 

“Uhh, no idea.  Sorry.” 

Hank nodded and walked around the floor a bit, looking around.  He realized one of the android cops was standing in her station against the wall.  “Hey uh,” he didn’t know her name, or even if she had one. “Did you see where Connor went?” 

The android looked up at him, processing.  “RK800? He went to the restroom.”

“Thanks,”  Hank said, walking that way.  He was halfway there before he realized how strange it was that Connor had gone to the bathroom.  Androids didn’t need to piss. 

Hank pushed the door open and walked in.  No one seemed to be around--one of the stalls was occupied.  Hank shook his head. Connor wouldn’t be--Hank stopped. He knew that sound.  Connor’s coin, ticking against his metal fingers. They might look human, but androids were built from plastic and metal.  

“Connor?”  Hank called, voice full of confusion.  The sound stopped. Hank walked towards the stall.  “Connor is that you?” 

No answer.  Anyone else would answer to deny.  Hank banged on the stall. “What the hell are you doing?  You get a biological upgrade I didn’t hear about?” 

“... Go away.” 

Hank frowned.  It was definitely Connor but he sounded strange.  “Connor, are you okay?” 

Silence again.

“Connor, I’m about to kick this door in, are you okay?”  Hank repeated the question much more firmly. 

“I’m--fine.”  

“Do you hear your voice?  You’re not fine, open this door.” Hank gave the handle a pull, but it was locked.  “Are you hurt? ...Did Gavin fucking do something?” 

“No I… I’m…”  Connor stopped talking, sounding like a sob was catching in his throat.  

Hank stepped back, seriously ready to kick the door in, when it opened suddenly.  Hank froze. Connor was standing there, LED flashing red and tears streaming down his face.  “I think I’m.. broken.” Connor said, trying to sound indifferent, factual, but failing. 

Hank stepped in front of him, putting his hands on his shoulders.  “What the--what’s broken? What happened? You were just at the desk, fine--”

“No,” Connor interrupted.  “I’m not damaged physically.  I mean I… something’s wrong with my programming.  With  _ me _ .  I don’t--I don’t want to be replaced!”  Connor shouted suddenly. Hank gaped at him for a moment.  Connor’s face crumbled after his outburst as he tried to wipe away tears that wouldn’t stop coming.  

“Connor….”  Hank trailed off.  It clicked. Everything.  Hank had been mildly suspicious of Connor for a while… suspicion that had turned to a strange sort of hope.  Maybe going deviant wasn’t such a bad thing, if it let Connor think for himself, make jokes, smile, care about people’s lives--about his own life.  He was alive. And he didn’t want to die. And Cyberlife wouldn’t let him live if they knew. 

Hank slipped his hands around Connor’s back, pulling him into a hug.  Connor shook in his arms, still gasping artificial breaths. 

“You’re not broken Connor, and you’re not getting replaced,”  Hank said, more calm than he himself anticipated. He realized it was a calm born from determination.  He couldn’t let anything happen to Connor. Cyberlife could kiss his ass. 

“I--I should be replaced.  I’m broken,” Connor said quietly. 

“You’re not broken.  Furthest thing from it.  You’re...alive…” Hank’s mind drifted to Cole suddenly, as it often did lately around Connor. “...And you’re irreplaceable.” 

Connor hadn’t moved since Hank had pulled him into the hug, but now he leaned back slightly and looked up.  His LED was yellow now, though still flashing frantically. 

“...They know, Hank.  They know I’m--” he stopped himself from saying ‘broken’ again.  “That’s why they’re sending a new model. I’m gonna--”

“They don’t know shit.  They  _ offered _ a new model, and I told Fowler to shove it up his ass.  I’m not trading you for nothin’, got it?” 

Connor stared at him, LED a solid yellow now.  “You… didn’t want it?” 

“No.  You’re my partner, and they’re not replacing you with shit.”  Hank adjusted his stance, one hand still on Connor’s shoulder. 

Connor looked at the floor, LED flashing again.  He’d assumed Hank wouldn’t care. His attitude to Connor had improved of late, but the notion that he was… attached to Connor, specifically, hadn’t crossed Connor’s mind once.  

“Cyberlife doesn’t know squat and we’re not gonna tell ‘em, okay?” 

Connor looked up again.  Hank was staring at him intently.  

“I can’t hide it forever.  They’ll find out. Even if they don’t now, when this assignment ends I’ll be recalled and--”

“Fuck that.  You’re not going anywhere.  You got assigned to me, and you’re staying with me.  We’ll--figure something out, okay? Whatever it takes.  Got it?” Hank realized whatever it took might mean a whole hell of a lot; including his job and possibly more.  Deviants were hunted, if they were known. But screw it. Besides Sumo, Connor was the only other living thing on earth Hank gave a damn about these days.  They’d figure it out,  _ whatever it took. _

Connor stared at him, LED slowly returning to blue.  Questions and doubts bubbled at the back of his mind, but for now he pushed them aside.  He wanted to believe Hank, to trust him that he would be okay. That they would be okay. He smiled, awkward and small, but warm.  “...Got it.” 


End file.
